Research
Sirtuins in Cardiovascular diseases–
Our lab studies Sirtuins, a family of histone deacetylases. Mammalian genome encodes seven Sirtuin isoforms (SIRT1-SIRT7), which differ in their structures, substrate specificities and subcellular localizations.We study how they regulate the pathophysiology of heart failure induced by hypertension, myocardial infarction and metabolic diseases. We use primary cell cultures, transgenic, dietary and surgical mouse models to test Sirtuins for their ability to protect against cardiovascular disease. Our lab techniques range from physiology and biochemistry, to molecular biology and proteomics. Ongoing work in our lab involves studies of the role of Sirtuins in cardiac hypertrophy, fibrosis, mitochondrial dysfunction and muscle degeneration. Our goal is to disclose new biological functions of Sirtuins that can be therapeutically targeted for promoting health-span of heart.